Shelter to remain open through February

Cincinnati’s winter shelter for the homeless will open on Dec. 10 and
remain open through February, the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition
announced on Friday.

The announcement preceded a winter storm that covered Cincinnati’s streets in ice and snow and sparked a citywide snow emergency over the weekend. The snow flurries and colder conditions will continue into the week,
according to the National Weather Service.

It was originally unclear
whether the winter shelter would be able to reach its $75,000
fundraising goal to open for its standard two-to-three months. But
concerns were allayed after the previous City Council appropriated
$30,000 to help the shelter open.

For its run during the 2012-2013 winter, the shelter housed roughly 600 people.

“It’s a relatively cheap program to run,” Josh Spring,
executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition,
previously told CityBeat. “To serve about 600 people with $75,000 is pretty good.”

Although the shelter now expects to be open through February,
it could still use additional contributions to remain open into March
in case the winter is particularly cold and enduring.

The shelter is made possible by the Greater Cincinnati
Homeless Coalition, Drop Inn Center, Strategies to End Homelessness,
Society of St. Vincent De Paul and Metropolitan Area Religious Coalition
of Cincinnati. It’s supported largely by private contributions.

Contributions to the winter shelter and Drop Inn Center can be made at tinyurl.com/WinterShelterCincinnati. To contribute specifically to the winter shelter, type in “winter shelter” in the text box below “Designation (Optional).”

Drop Inn Center to move, sewer and water rates set to rise, CVG's losses cost region

The Drop Inn Center and 3CDC (Cincinnati City Center Development Corporation) on Friday announced a deal
to move the region’s largest homeless shelter from its current location
in Over-the-Rhine to Queensgate. The Drop Inn Center says the new
location represents “most of the things on our wish list, which is
fantastic.” And 3CDC has been pushing the shelter to move since it began
its efforts to revitalize the Over-the-Rhine and downtown area, which
some label gentrification. Josh Spring, executive director of the
Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition, said in a statement that
government officials and developers should be helping maintain
affordable housing in all parts of the city instead of moving poor
people to other neighborhoods.

Local sewer rates could rise by 6 percent
and local water rates will skyrocket by 22.6 percent following proposed
price hikes from the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD). The higher
sewer rates are needed to help pay for a federally mandated sewer upgrade
that will cost $3.2 billion over 15 years, according to MSD officials.
MSD says the spike in water bills is necessary because water use is
declining and treatment costs are increasing.

The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) has lost more flights and seats since 2005
than any other major airport across the country, which effectively cost
the Cincinnati area 33,000 jobs and nearly $1 billion in annual
economic activity in the same time span, according to an analysis from The Cincinnati Enquirer.
The 78-percent drop in flights — far higher than the national average
of 19 percent — comes even as CVG’s average fares increased by 26 percent,
which were also above the national average of 4 percent.

Supporters of Cincinnati’s $133 million streetcar project
will meet tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Cincinnati Hyatt Regency Ballroom
to discuss their options to prevent Cranley from stopping the streetcar
project. Supporters were recently reinvigorated by the current city
administration’s projections that canceling the streetcar project could cost nearly as much as completing it.

Economists generally agree that state officials don’t play
a big role in changing the economy in the short term, but political
scientists say the economy will still play a major role in deciding Ohio’s 2014 gubernatorial elections.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ed FitzGerald argues Republican Gov.
John Kasich deserves the blame for Ohio’s economy, given that Kasich
initially credited his policies for Ohio’s brief economic turnaround
early on in his term. But now that the economy is beginning to stagnate,
Kasich refuses to take the blame and points to congressional gridlock at the federal level
as the reason for Ohio’s slowdown.

Ohio paid nearly $1.2 million
for a string of charter schools that closed weeks after they opened.
The schools, which all operated under the name Olympus High School, are
now facing an audit and have been ordered to pay back some of the money.

A state job program for disabled Ohioans could lose millions in federal funds
after the U.S. Department of Education warned the state it is
improperly spending the money on case management and other
administrative activities. But the head of Opportunities for Ohioans
with Disabilities insists the state program is under compliance.

Money would put shelter closer to $75,000 minimum goal

City Council’s Budget and Finance Committee on Thursday
called for the city administration to locate $30,000 to help fund the
winter shelter, which would push the shelter closer to the $75,000 it
needs to remain open from mid-to-late December through February.

The shelter currently estimates it’s at approximately
$32,000 in contributions, according to Josh Spring, executive director
of the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition.

The city administration now needs to locate the money and
turn the transaction into an ordinance, which will officially allocate
the funds. Spring says that should go in front of the Budget and Finance
Committee in the next couple weeks.

Although the $75,000 is often cited as the shelter’s goal,
Spring emphasizes that it’s only the minimum. If early March turns out
to be a particularly cold, the shelter would prefer to stay open for
some extra time, which would require money above the $75,000 minimum.

But without the city’s contribution, the shelter won’t have enough money to stay open beyond even 30 days.

Spring says the program is necessary to keep Cincinnati’s
homeless population from freezing to death. Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld
echoed the sentiment at Thursday’s committee meeting, saying it would be
shameful if the city allowed people to die due to winter conditions.

The winter shelter aims to house 91 people each night and
kept roughly 600 people from the cold throughout the 2012-2013 season,
according to Spring.

“It’s a relatively cheap program to run,” Spring previously told CityBeat. “To serve about 600 people with $75,000 is pretty good.”

Still, Spring says money has been more difficult to
collect this year. He attributes that to reduced enthusiasm as the
concept becomes more commonplace.

“When we started doing this three years ago, it was sort
of a new thing,” Spring explained. “It’s not so new anymore, which makes
bringing in dollars more difficult. But the need hasn’t changed.”

The shelter is put together by the Greater Cincinnati
Homeless Coalition, Drop Inn Center, Strategies to End Homelessness,
Society of St. Vincent De Paul and Metropolitan Area Religious Coalition
of Cincinnati. It’s supported largely by private contributions.

Anyone can donate to the winter shelter — and Drop Inn Center — at tinyurl.com/WinterShelterCincinnati. To contribute specifically to the winter shelter, type in “winter shelter” in the text box below “Designation (Optional).”

As of Friday, Cincinnati’s winter shelter still needs $43,000
out of the $75,000 required to open from
late December through February. That means hundreds of homeless people
could be left out in the cold — literally — for at least a month longer
than usual if the shelter doesn’t get more donations. According to
Spring, the goal each night is to shelter 91 people, although the number
can fluctuate depending on the circumstances. For its run between late
2012 and early 2013, the winter shelter housed roughly 600 people, or
about $125 a person. Anyone can donate to the winter shelter — and Drop
Inn Center — at tinyurl.com/WinterShelterCincinnati. To contribute specifically to the winter shelter, type in “winter shelter” in the text box below “Designation (Optional).”

Officials involved with the $133 million streetcar project are considering around-the-clock work
for certain days to speed up delivery of rail and minimize disruptions
at busy streets around Over-the-Rhine. The third shifts would reduce the
time needed to deliver and install rails around Findlay Market and
Liberty Street from one week to a couple days at each location, which
would allow the city to avoid closing down surrounding streets beyond a
weekend or Monday and Tuesday, according to project executive John
Deatrick. He says the extra work is absolutely not related to recent
discussions about canceling the project.

The new school funding formula approved by Republican Gov.
John Kasich and the Republican-controlled General Assembly means
high-minority schools get less state aid
than schools with less diversity. Southwest Ohio’s 10 most diverse
school districts will average $3,837 in state aid per student, while the
10 least diverse districts will average $4,027 per student. The finding
is just the latest controversy for a school funding formula that is
supposed to make state aid to schools more equitable. CityBeat covered some of the prior concerns in further detail here.

Despite Mayor-elect John Cranley’s insistence that the streetcar conversation “is over,” The Cincinnati Enquirercontinues getting messages in support of the project.
Supporters of the streetcar plan to launch a campaign this week to
lobby council members and Cranley to back the project. The campaign will
begin on Thursday with a town hall-style meeting particularly aimed at
stakeholders along the streetcar route. The location and specific time
should be announced later today or tomorrow.

The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport spent nearly $120,000 since July on coaching and job evaluation services for its board and CEO, according to The Cincinnati Enquirer.
That’s on top of the $140,000 the board spent on travel, conferences
and expensive dinners since 2011. Following the disclosures, local
leaders have called for leadership changes at the board.

Cincinnati-area businesses only have until Nov. 15 to garner enough votes to enter into a competition hosted by Chase Bank that will divide $3 million among 12 small businesses across the country.

The Greater Cincinnati Port Authority’s expansion plans already received approval
from Hamilton, Brown, Adams, Scioto and Boone counties. The plan
expands the Port Authority’s boundaries from 26 miles to 205 miles along
the Ohio River, which the Port says will make the agency more
attractive to businesses.

At least 41 percent of 1,600 new apartments in and near downtown are receiving aid from the city of Cincinnati.
City officials say the aid helps continue Cincinnati’s economic
momentum and urban revitalization. But critics say more aid should go to low-income housing and other Cincinnati neighborhoods.

Shelter could open as late as mid-January without more support

Cincinnati’s winter shelter for the homeless might not be
able to open until mid-January if it doesn’t get more contributions,
says Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Homeless
Coalition.

That means hundreds of homeless people could be left out
in the cold — literally — for at least a month longer than usual if the
shelter doesn’t get more donations.

Spring says the winter shelter is currently looking at
roughly $32,000 in donations if the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office
gives $5,000 as previously promised. The city also plans to give a
contribution, but it’s looking like they’ll give less this year than
they have in the past, according to Spring.

The $32,000 is far short of the $75,000 necessary to keep
the shelter open for roughly two months — from late December through the
end of February.

“It’s a bit of a precarious place to be at in November,” Spring
says. “For regular folks out there and companies that want to invest in
people not freezing to death or losing their appendages to frostbite,
it’s definitely time to give.”

According to Spring, the goal each night is to shelter 91
people, although the number fluctuates depending on the circumstances of any
given night. But the shelter ultimately services hundreds of homeless while
it’s open as some people improve their situation and additional numbers fall into homelessness.

For its run between late 2012
and early 2013, the winter shelter housed roughly 600 people.

“It’s a relatively cheap program to run,” Spring claims. “To serve about 600 people with $75,000 is pretty good.”

The shelter is put together by the Greater Cincinnati
Homeless Coalition, Drop Inn Center, Strategies to End Homelessness,
Society of St. Vincent De Paul and Metropolitan Area Religious Coalition
of Cincinnati. It’s supported largely by private contributions.

“When we started doing this three years ago, it was sort
of a new thing,” Spring explains. “It’s not so new anymore, which makes
bringing in dollars more difficult. But the need hasn’t changed.”

Anyone can donate to the winter shelter — and Drop Inn Center — at tinyurl.com/WinterShelterCincinnati. To contribute specifically to the winter shelter, type in “winter shelter” in the text box below “Designation (Optional).”

Over-the-Rhine, Central Business District march comes amisdt Justice Center debate

If you had to guess how many people are in Cincinnati are considered homeless, what would be your guess? Would it be anywhere near 7,000?

That's the number of Cincinnatians cited in a 2012 report
from Strategies to End Homelessness that are either staying in shelters or in places
not meant for human habitation.

The Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition will coalesce to recognize the plight of those 7,000 when it
holds its annual Homeless Awareness March on Saturday, Oct. 26 starting
at 3 p.m. at Buddy’s Place, a permanent housing facility
for the homeless located at 1300 Vine St. in Over-the-Rhine.

Josh Spring, executive director at GRHC, says the march will explore areas in Over-the-Rhine and the Central Business District particularly plagued by homelessness. There will be about 10 stops, each of which will be marked by a speech from representatives of several advocacy groups, including the Interfaith Workers' Center, OTR Community Housing, Streetvibes, People's Coalition for Equality and Justice and the Drop Inn Center.

The march comes at a particularly auspicious time for
GRHC, which recently helped four homeless plaintiffs file a lawsuit
against the Hamilton County Sheriff’s office for depriving homeless
people of their constitutional rights by threatening to arrest people
who sleep or inhabit the common areas around the Hamilton County
Courthouse and Hamilton County Justice Center downtown.

Those areas have recently become the center of a public
health debate between groups like GRHC and county officials, who have been forced to clean up urine
and feces left behind the homeless and argue they
just don’t have the resources to keep up.

The GHRC held a protest on Oct. 16 in front of the courthouse asking Sheriff Neil to rescind the policy, the same day the lawsuit was filed.

In an effort to compromise, Spring and other supporters have asked the county to at least wait to stick to the policy until the winter shelter opens in December, but county officials are hesitant to ignore the cleanliness problem for that long.

Advocates such as Spring, however, argue the city should
take a “prevention first” approach instead by figuring out what will
keep Cincinnatians from becoming homeless in the first place.

Spring says he hopes the march will draw both people who have come specifically to protest displacement and others who come to learn about the nature of homelessness in Cincinnati. "We really hope people walk away with some passion to go and do something about this," he says.

Last year's marchwas centered around protesting Western & Southern's manipulative legal disputes with the Anna Louise Inn, which provides safe and affordable housing to low-income women. The battle came to an end in May when Cincinnati Union Bethel, which owns the Inn, signed an agreement with Western & Southern to move from Lytle Park to Mount Auburn.

Early voting for the 2013 City Council and mayoral elections is now underway. Find your voting location here. Normal voting hours will be 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., although some days will be extended.

Congress last night voted
to end a partial government shutdown that lasted for more than two
weeks and avoid defaulting on the nation’s debt. In the end, House
Republicans, including Speaker John Boehner and local Reps. Steve Chabot
and Brad Wenstrup, got less than nothing for their threats of default
and shutdown: Obamacare wasn’t repealed or delayed, taxes weren’t cut
and federal spending remained flat. Instead, Republicans were left with the worst polling results
Gallup measured for either political party since it began asking the question in 1992. Meanwhile, President
Barack Obama and congressional Democrats got the clean budget and debt
ceiling bills they were asking for all along. But the funding measures only last until Jan. 15 and the debt ceiling increase remains until Feb. 7,
leaving some groups on both sides of the aisle to ask whether the
dramatic showdown will happen all over again in a few months.

Four local homeless sued Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Neil
over his attempts to evict homeless people sleeping at the courthouse
and Hamilton County Justice Center with the threat of jail time.
Homeless advocates argue the policy punishes homeless people for being
homeless; they say the county should focus on creating jobs and housing
opportunities, not arresting people who are just trying to find a safe
spot to sleep. But the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office says it’s
addressing a public health issue; Major Charmaine McGuffey, head of the
Hamilton County Justice Department, says that every morning county
officials are forced to clean up urine and feces left by the homeless
the night before, and often the county doesn’t have the resources to
completely disinfect the areas.

In the ongoing legal battle for the Emery Theatre, the Requiem Project amended its lawsuit
against the University of Cincinnati and lessees and asked the courts
to remove UC from ownership of the building. Requiem argues UC has
failed to live up to the goals of Mary Emery’s charitable trust by
allowing the building to fall into disrepair and non-use over the years.
Courts originally approved the development of apartments in the
building as long as the profits went toward renovating the theater, but
after 14 years apartment operators say there are multiple mortgages on
the property and no profits. The trial is scheduled for February.

Now in print: Mayoral candidate John Cranley, who’s running for mayor against fellow Democrat and Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, rejected support
from the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST),
and the conservative organization’s history of anti-LGBT causes helps
explain why.

Qualls scored higher across the board
than Cranley in the scorecard released today by the African-American
Chamber of Commerce. Gene Beaupre, a political science professor at
Xavier University, previously told CityBeat that the black vote
will likely decide the mayoral election. Council candidates Charlie
Winburn, P.G. Sittenfeld, Vanessa White, Yvette Simpson, David Mann and
Pam Thomas also topped the scorecard.

Ohio House Republicans may sue
Gov. John Kasich for his decision to bypass the legislature and instead
get approval from a seven-member legislative panel for the federally
funded Medicaid expansion, which would use Obamacare dollars to extend
eligibility for the government-run health insurance program to more
low-income Ohioans for at least two years. The Health Policy Institute
of Ohio previously found the expansion would generate $1.8 billion for
the state and insure nearly half a million Ohioans over the next decade.
CityBeat covered Kasich’s decision in further detail here.

Meanwhile, the Ohio House and Senate are debating three different ways
to approach an overhaul of Medicaid and bring the program’s costs down.
State Rep. Barbara Sears’ bill pushes for a swathe of reforms and cost
controls, while State Rep. John Becker’s bill aims to significantly
weaken the program to the absolute minimums required by the federal
government. Becker’s proposal would likely leave hundreds of thousands
of low-income Ohioans without health insurance.

Speaking in Cincinnati yesterday, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the federal government is working to correct the many errors plaguing Obamacare’s online marketplaces. The glitches and traffic overload have made HealthCare.gov,
which acts as Obamacare’s shopping portal for Ohio and 35 other states,
practically unusable for most Americans since the website launched on
Oct. 1.

Ohio’s prison agency reassigned
the warden and second-in-command at the Correctional Reception Center
weeks after Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro was found dead in his cell.

A 20-year-old woman is expected to recover after her car crashed into a Winton Hills building while she overdosed on heroin, according to Cincinnati police.

Advocates say tactic focuses on the wrong problem

Homeless advocates gathered in front of the Hamilton
County Courthouse on Wednesday to speak out against the county sheriff’s attempts to evict homeless people
sleeping at the courthouse and Hamilton County Justice Center with the threat of jail time.

The press conference came on the same day that four local homeless filed a lawsuit
in federal court claiming Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Neil’s new
policy is cruel and unusual because it punishes people for being
homeless.

Major
Charmaine McGuffey, head of the Hamilton County Justice Department, says the policy is necessary to address a public health issue. She explains that every morning county officials are forced to clean up urine and feces left by the homeless the night before, and often the county doesn’t have the resources to completely disinfect the areas.

Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati
Homeless Coalition, says county officials should stop using taxpayer
money to address public defecation and focus on the
state of the economy. He’s asking locals to tell county officials, “I want my government to invest in
jobs and housing, not in pushing people to the margins.”

If the policy remains, Spring says the county could at
least compromise and hold enforcement until the winter shelter opens,
which would provide another housing opportunity for many of the homeless
people who currently rely on county buildings for a safe spot to sleep.

McGuffey says the current timeline for the winter shelter opening — two months — is too much time to wait for what she describes as a public health issue. She says it’s also unclear whether local organizations, which are still gathering funds for the shelter, will have enough money to open it.

At the press conference, Spring was joined by several
homeless people who shared their experiences. All the speakers echoed a
similar theme: They’re not homeless by choice, and they only sleep on
county property because it’s much safer than the alternatives, such as
alleys and abandoned buildings.

McGuffey insists no one is trying to demonize homeless people. She says officers try to link homeless people with local human services when possible. Some of that outreach is already underway through trained officers and neighborhood liaisons, and starting next week the county will bring in a trained mental health professional to act as an advocate and outreach coordinator.

But if help can’t be found, McGuffey says officers have to threaten arrest to invoke a “sense of immediacy” or homeless people might never leave the properties and the public health issue would go unaddressed.

So far, the sheriff’s office sees the program as successful. Over the past four weeks, it’s brought down the amount of homeless people camping out at the Hamilton County Courthouse and Justice Center each night from 40 to 12, according to McGuffey. She says the reductions exemplify people who were redirected to human services, but there’s no hard evidence showing those people actually got help or whether the reduction is temporary.

Spring says there aren’t enough human services to get all of the city’s homeless help. That, he claims, is the real problem that needs local officials’ attention.

Several council
candidates, including Chris Seelbach, Greg Landsman and Mike Moroski,
say increasing human services funding to 1 percent of the operating budget will be a
priority for them over the next few years. The increase would represent an
improvement, but it would still fall short of the city’s 1.5 percent goal.

Meanwhile, Strategies to End Homelessness aims to reduce homelessness in Hamilton County from more than 7,000 to roughly 3,500 over the next five years through an initiative backed by the city and county.

As part of Homelessness Awareness Month, Spring and other
advocates will march in support of homeless causes later this month. The
march will begin at 3 p.m. on Oct. 26 at 1300 Vine St. in Over-the-Rhine.

First streetcar tracks set, homeless to sue county, Medicaid expansion expected to pass

Early voting for the 2013 City Council and mayoral elections is now underway. Find your voting location here. Normal voting hours will be 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., although some days will be extended.

Cincinnati yesterday laid down the first two streetcar tracks,
putting the project on a clear path to completion after years of
financial and political hurdles. The $133 million project is now
expected to continue its construction phase over the next three years, with a goal
of opening to the public on Sept. 15, 2016. City officials, including
Mayor Mark Mallory and City Manager Milton Dohoney, celebrated the
milestone and thanked supporters for remaining committed to the project. Meanwhile, former
Councilman John Cranley, a streetcar opponent who’s running for mayor against
streetcar supporter Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, criticized the city for
laying down the tracks instead of delaying the project until a new mayor
takes office in December. Cranley insists that he’ll cancel the project
if he takes office, even though roughly half a mile of track will be
laid out by then and, because of contractual obligations and federal
money tied to the project, canceling the project at this point could cost millions more than completing it.

The Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition yesterday announced it’s suing the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Department
over a new policy that attempts to remove homeless people from
courthouse steps with the threat of arrest. The sheriff’s office says it
still intends to redirect homeless people to housing and other
services, but it told WVXU that clearing out the courthouse is necessary
to invoke a “type of immediacy” to encourage homeless residents “to
seek housing and a better situation.” Advocates call the policy
dangerous and unfair. A press conference will be held later today to
discuss the lawsuit.

State Senate President Keith Faber says he expects Gov.
John Kasich’s proposal for a two-year, federally funded Medicaid
expansion to gain approval from a seven-member legislative oversight panel
known as the Controlling Board. Faber, a Republican who opposes the
expansion, says it’s now time for the legislature to consider broader
reforms for Medicaid, which provides health insurance to low-income and
disabled Ohioans. After months of wrangling with legislators in his own
political party to approve the expansion, Kasich, a Republican, on
Friday announced he would bypass the legislature
and instead ask the Controlling Board to approve federal funds to
expand Medicaid eligibility to more low-income Ohioans for two years.
The Health Policy Institute of Ohio previously found the expansion would generate $1.8 billion for Ohio and insure nearly half a million Ohioans over the next decade.

Mayor Mallory says the Millenium Hotel’s owners agreed to conduct a feasibility study to see what kind of renovations the market will support for the hotel. Mallory told The Cincinnati Enquirer that the agreement is the first sign of progress since discussions about overhauling the shabby hotel began.

To tackle concerns about second-hand smoking, one state senator proposed a bill
that would ban smoking in a car when a young child is present. It’s the
second time in two years State Sen. Charleta Tavares (D-Columbus)
introduced the bill.

Allegiant Air will offer low fares
to fly to Florida from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International
Airport (CVG), ending months of speculation over whether the airline
would pick CVG or Lunken Airport.

A state audit released on Tuesday found a local water worker was paid $437 in 2001 for work that wasn’t done.

State GOP restricts Obamacare, group fights homelessness, school grades linked to poverty

As the Oct. 1 opening date approaches for the Affordable Care Act’s (“Obamacare”) online marketplaces, outreach campaigns are beginning to take root and aim at states with the largest uninsured populations,
including Ohio and its more than 1.25 million uninsured. But the
campaigns have run into a series of problems in the past few months,
with many of the issues driven by regulatory changes and opposition from
Republican legislators at the state and federal level. So far, none of
the state’s “navigators” — the federally financed organizations that
will participate in outreach campaigns and help enroll people into
marketplaces — have been certified by the Ohio Department of Insurance
as they await completion of 20-hour federal training courses. Meanwhile,
some organizations have been shut out of the process entirely,
including Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, because of
regulations enacted by state Republicans.

Strategies to End Homelessness yesterday released its first annual progress report
detailing how the organization intends to reduce homelessness in
Hamilton County by half from 2012 to 2017. The main strategies,
according to the report: prevention, rapid rehousing that lasts six to
12 months, transitional housing for up to 24 months and permanent
supportive housing that targets the chronically homeless and disabled.
The goal is to reduce homelessness by using supportive services to get
to the root of the issue, whether it’s joblessness, mental health
problems or other causes, and ensure shelter services aren’t necessary
in the first place.

A new study found Ohio school performance is strongly tied to student poverty. Damon Asbury of the Ohio School Boards Association says the results shouldn’t make
excuse for low-performing schools, but he claims there are other
factors the state government should consider when grading schools,
including whether low-performing schools actually need more, not less,
funding to make up for a lack of resources. Greg Lawson of the
conservative Buckeye Institute seems to agree, but he says his
organization, which supports school choice and vouchers, will soon
release a study showing no correlation between state and local funding
and student performance.

The Cincinnati Enquirer yesterday held its endorsement interviews with mayoral candidates Roxanne Qualls and John Cranley, with some of the highlights posted here. Also, check out CityBeat’s previous Q&A’s with the candidates: Qualls and Cranley.